1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to automated poultry needle injector systems that mechanically pump a brine solution into poultry products using a pump pulling from a brine tank and a bank of needles mounted in an injection head.
2. Brief Description of the Related Art
Prior art needle injection systems pull a brine solution from a tank by means of a centrifugal pump, and the discharge goes through a series of filters and screens to separate the solid particles from the brine solution before it goes into the injection head. Once the brine gets to the injection head, it flows through a series of needles and from those needles into the product (e.g. poultry carcasses). Not all of the brine stays inside the product. The excess flows through the injector body and back into the brine tank to be filtered and reused. One drawback of the prior art system is that, throughout the process, all of the screens become clogged with solid particles that have been separated from the brine when filtered and the filters lose surface area. This causes a decrease in pressure in the discharge line downstream of the filter and prohibits the injector from injecting product consistently during the full run time shift. The injection percentage will drop after the filter becomes clogged due to running at a lower pressure. Another drawback is that as the standard filters become clogged, an operator has to manually switch from the filter in use to a secondary filter so the previous one can be removed and cleaned prior to being used again. During a normal shift, this can happen many times which requires substantial time and resources to keep the system running correctly.
The limitations of the prior art are overcome by the present invention as described below.